It's Getting Hot, Flat, and Crowded in Herre!

Yesterday I watched Thomas L. Friedman's keynote address on BookExpo 2008 America. Friedman presented his upcoming book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution - and How It Can Renew America.

"People say to me: How can we afford to transform our whole economy in order to prevent climate change when climate change could turn out to be a hoax?

"To which I say: If climate change is a hoax it is the most wonderful hoax ever perpetrated on the United States of America because transforming our economy to clean power and energy efficiency to mitigate global warming is the equivalent in training for the Olympic triathlon. If you make it to the Olympics you have a much better chance of winning because you have developed every muscle. If you don't make it to the Olympics you're still healthy or stronger, fitter and more likely to live longer and win any other race in life. And like the triathlon you don't just improve one muscle or one skill but many which become mutually reinforcing and improve the health of the whole system." [watch the video of Friedman's keynote]

Exactly. I'm now looking forward to reading Friedman's book.

And speaking of energy efficiency, here is an excerpt from Friedman's NYTimes article, The Power Green.

"Because a new green ideology, properly defined, has the power to mobilize liberals and conservatives, evangelicals and atheists, big business and environmentalists around an agenda that can both pull us together and propel us forward. That’s why I say: We don’t just need the first black president. We need the first green president. We don’t just need the first woman president. We need the first environmental president. We don’t just need a president who has been toughened by years as a prisoner of war but a president who is tough enough to level with the American people about the profound economic, geopolitical and climate threats posed by our addiction to oil — and to offer a real plan to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels." [read more]

Now check out who's greener, Obama or McCain. Ok, Nader looks green too.